# каꙗне
## Old Novgorodian
### Etymology

By surface analysis, каꙗн- (kajan-) +‎ -е (-e). Origin unclear, probably the root comes from Kven kvääni and kainu (“Kven”), since until the 11th‒12th centuries the Kven tribes lived on the territory of the northern coast of the Gulf of Bothnia, i.e. Каꙗно море (Kajano more). More at Etymology of Kven. First attested in the August 12, 1323 in the Treaty of Nöteborg, and later in birchbark letter no. 286, dated c. 1360‒1380.
Directly related to Old East Slavic каꙗньскъ (kajanĭskŭ), known since the 1400s as part of names Каꙗньска землꙗ (Kajanĭska zemlja, literally “Kajan land”), Каꙗньскъ рѫбежь (Kajanĭskŭ rǫbežĭ, literally “Kajan frontier”) and каꙗнинъ (kajaninŭ, “Kajanian”). Obviously there is a connection with the modern name of the city Swedish Kajana, Finnish Kajaani in Finland. Compare Swedish Kajanaland (“Kainuu”), looks like a calque of East Slavic каꙗна f sg (kajana) + ꙁемлꙗ (zemlja, “land”).

### Pronunciation

* Hyphenation: ка‧ꙗ‧не

### Adjective

каꙗне • (kajane)
* related to Kajan people (inhabitants of the coast of the Gulf of Bothnia, northwestern region of Finland known as Ostrobothnia)
** 1323 August 12, Договорная грамота Новгорода со Швецией о мире (Ореховецкий договор) [Treaty of Nöteborg]‎, Oreshek Fortress:… оттолѣ Корѣломкошки, оттолѣ Колѣмакошки, оттолѣ Патсоѣки, оттоле Каꙗно море.… ottolě Korělomkoški, ottolě Kolěmakoški, ottolě Patsojěki, ottole Kajano more.… from there Korelomkoshki, from there Kolemakoshki, from there Patsoek, from there Kajan Sea.
** c. 1360‒1380, Schaeken, Jos (2019) Voices on Birchbark (SSGL; 43)‎, Leiden, Boston: Brill, transl., Берестяная грамота № 286 [Birchbark letter no. 286]‎, Novgorod:… а тꙑ ходи не боисѧ миро взѧлѣ на (с)[т]арои межѣ юриѧ кнѧзѧ (а ме)[н]ѧ послалѣ корѣлѣ на каѧно море а (не п)омѣшаі не испакости каѧнецамо ни соби присловиѧ …… a ty xodi ne boisę miro vzęlě na (s)[t]aroi mežě juriję knęzę (a me)[n]ję poslalě korělě na kajęno more a (ne p)oměšai ne ispakosti kajęnećamo ni sobi prisloviję …… Make your rounds, don't be afraid; they have made peace on the old border of Prince Jurij. And they have sent [me] to Karelia to the Kajan Sea. (Can you imagine:) You (i.e., 'I') shouldn't hinder, shouldn't do harm to the Kajan people, and shouldn't make a bad name for yourself! …

#### Derived terms

* каꙗньць m (kajanĭćĭ)
* Каꙗно море n (Kajano more)

### References

* ↑ Девянина, М. С. (2012) “Мифологические основы эпических топонимов”, in Перспективные вопросы мировой науки. Филологические науки‎ (in Russian), Казахстан: Карагандинский государственный университет им. Е.А. Букетова, archived from the original on 2019-10-01
* ↑ Shaskol'skii, Igor (1997) “Новгородские владения на берегах Ботнического залива (XIII‒XIV вв.)”, in Новгородский исторический сборник‎ (in Russian), number 6 (16), Санкт-Петербург, archived from the original on 2016-09-30, page 144‒164
* ↑ Yanin, Valentin (1998) Я послал тебе бересту… (in Russian), Москва: Школа «Языки русской культуры», →ISBN, page 76
* ↑ Федотова, П. И. (2022) Названия Балтийского моря в русских средневековых источниках (in Russian), Санкт-Петербург: Библиотека РАН, →ISBN, page 58‒59
* ↑ Zaliznyak, Andrey (2004) Древненовгородский диалект [Old Novgorod dialect]‎ (in Russian), 2nd edition, Moscow: Languages of Slavic Cultures, →ISBN, page 746

### Further reading

* “каꙗне”, in Берестяные грамоты – Национальный корпус русского языка [Birchbark Letters – Russian National Corpus], https://ruscorpora.ru/, 2003–2025